Sunday With The Ancestors

My beloved nephew and I have been delving into our roots together lately, excitedly sharing our discoveries via email.  (He's in New England and I'm in New Jersey so email it is.)  I can't tell you how much fun I've been having doing this with him for so many reasons.

We are New Jersey people and our roots here run deep.  I grew up listening to countless stories from my Polish grandmother about her childhood growing up on a farm in Middlesex county.  Thanks to the subscription to CensusRecords.com, I was able to finally figure out where that farm was since Grandma seemed to not ever be able to recall its exact location.  She knew the town but street names have changed a lot since 1913 and thereabouts and sometimes farmsteads were just known by the owner's last name and vague location, such as "the Smith farm over by Main Street".
The 1920 census at least gave me the crossroads of my family's farm location so that, of course, meant only one thing...

road trip.


Yesterday, JP and I left early so we had plenty of time to spend up there.  It's only about 90 minutes via Turnpike from our house in Cumberland county so that was great.  And I am so lucky to have a husband who more than willingly takes me on these adventures.

My intention was to visit the area where the farm was, then go on to the churches where my grandmother was baptized in 1913 and the one where she and my grandfather were married in 1932.
Happily, we accomplished all of it yesterday.

Here's where we started:

The relief that this area is still farmland was huge.  I was terrified that I would find strip malls or McMansions and was elated that it wasn't the case...although, sadly, the McMansions are encroaching.

Here's what I found there:
(click on images to view them larger)

What I did not anticipate was my reaction to being here, at or near the place where grandmother came from.  Right away I became emotional and teary.  And I had a subtle sense of the feeling you get when you've been away and you finally come home.  I also felt quite a bit of reverence, like I was walking on hallowed or sacred ground.
Some things you can't explain.
Those are usually the things I like best.

From there we set off to go to the church where my grandparents were married.

But first took a slight detour to Mendoker's Bakery where we bought a nice selection of deliciousness because no road trip is complete without a stop at a bakery.

That cannoli you see was literally the best cannoli I've ever eaten in my life...and I have eaten cannoli from all the famous places where people tell you to get cannoli from in north Jersey and New York. Which, by the way, reminds me to tell you

Don't ALWAYS believe the hype

Just because a place is famous, well-known, or on television does not mean that their products are as good as they would like you to believe they are.  Hype, people, hype.

(A tangent about baked goods coming from me should surprise no one.)

Mendoker's cupcakes were close to excellent, as well.  Did you know I am a cupcake connoisseur? It's true; I'm like an authority.  I used to actually have my very own cupcake business so I've got mad cupcake street cred.

Sharon, Cupcake Thug

Anyway, here is the church in Helmetta, NJ, where my grandparents were married in 1932:

I loved walking on these steps, knowing I was standing in the place my grandparents stood on what I hope was one of the happiest days of their lives.

Jennie (nee Sierzputowski) and Albert Stachura (and some other Polish people)

We got there too late to attend mass and I tried to go in anyway but all of the doors were locked which made me sad.  I am old enough to remember when churches never locked their doors because, you know, you might need to get inside and get holy if something was going on for you.  Times have changed and now they have to lock their doors. Sigh.

I guess instead they now offer outside places if you need to pray and get holy.  I love these outdoor quiet places and I so appreciate that they're available for people like me, who really do use them when necessary.

Next we went up the road a bit to the church in South River, NJ, where my grandmother was baptized in 1913.

So weird to think that here is where my great grandparents Mateusz/Matthew and Kamilia/Camilla carried in their infant and only daughter to be baptized...104 years ago.

I love churches and I especially love them when I have connection to them for one reason or another. Next time I go up there I will make sure I get there in time to attend mass.  Lent starts this week so I'll have lots of opportunity to get inside unlocked churches in the next six weeks.

I'll have to figure out how to take pictures discreetly inside.

We were pretty hungry after all this driving around and stopping to let me get out and wander and take pictures.

I had planned our trip so we ended in South River in order to wind up at Krakowiak Restaurant.  One thing that makes me wildly proud in my marriage is that I have turned my husband on to so much REAL food, ethnic food, that he'd never eaten before.  He is married to me, a half Polish person raised on Polish food, so he eats Polish food regularly but never at a Polish restaurant.  It was time to change that.

And that's how we wound up here...

image borrowed from Google maps

...at Krakowiak Restaurant in South River, NJ.

I love neighborhood restaurants.  I love supporting them and I love that they still exist.  This is why we all should be supporting Main Streets...but that's a story/diatribe for another time.

(But, seriously, the next time you want to go out to eat go to a local place instead of a chain.)  

The food here was outstanding.  We shared the Krakow platter that included Bigos, Pierogi, Kielbasa, Golabki, along with a side of three giant potato pancakes.

There isn't much I wouldn't do in exchange for potato pancakes, by the way.  I was in potato pancake heaven.  I use both the sour cream and the applesauce.  You?

Here is the inside of the restaurant taken with my cell phone camera which is horrible and is why I'm upgrading my phone today so please excuse the awful quality:

I will tell you this:  in my life I do not think I have even been in a cleaner restaurant than this one.  I always look for that and words can't express how much I appreciate ordering food in a place that is spotless.

And the people were so nice!

I can't wait to go back and  I have complete intentions of becoming a regular customer.

Hopefully, some day soon I'll bring my nephew there.

In the meantime...

Have a nice day, sweetheart

 -Sharon